Portsmouth invented the production line
- The Block Mills, 1803
- First mass production anywhere
- 130,000 blocks a year
- Ten men doing the work of 110
How Portsmouth grew
The short version, in order. Pick a year.
The Admiralty approves the scheme
Marc Brunel proposed making ships’ pulley blocks by machine.
The Block Mills, and the invention of mass production
In 1802 the Admiralty approved a scheme by Marc Brunel to make ships’ pulley blocks by machine. The machines were built by Henry Maudslay and installed in Portsmouth Dockyard between 1803 and 1805, arranged so that a block passed down a line of specialised machines with one operation performed at each stage.
It was the first mass-production line anywhere using all-metal machine tools. By 1808 the mills were making 130,000 blocks a year, and ten men were doing work that had previously needed a hundred and ten.
Every assembly line since, and a fair amount of how we think about breaking a process into repeatable steps, starts in a dockyard building in Portsmouth.
What that means if you trade in Portsmouth
Portsmouth is dense — one of the most densely populated cities in the country — and hemmed in by water, so trade areas are tight and travel times matter more than distance suggests.
It is also a services and naval city with a large transient population, which means a steady supply of people who have just arrived and are looking for a plumber, a dentist or a barber for the first time.
What Portsmouth businesses ask us for
Newcomers are your market
People arrive here constantly and search from scratch. Write for somebody who knows nothing about you.
Island geography
Portsea, Southsea, Cosham and the mainland are different journeys. Be specific.
Parking and access
In a city this dense it is a real question. Answering it earns trust.
How well do you know Portsmouth?
Five quick questions. Get all five right and you win a 10% off discount code for your website. Every answer is somewhere on this page, so have a read if you get stuck.
Portsmouth quiz · 1 of 5
What did the Portsmouth Block Mills make?
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